Tinto is a newer spirit producer from Portugal. They are located at the northern-most point of the country along the River Minho in the town of Valença. Seriously, if they walked a quarter mile North they would be in Galicia, Spain. As far as anyone can tell, their only product so far is Red Premium Gin. Founder João Guterres is proud of his signature creation, which is distilled by Decanter Primera Marcas.

The “Red” in Tinto Red Premium Gin is not a marketing spin, and it’s not a Sloe Gin either. As João Guterres tells the story, he gathered basketfuls of local botanicals to create a Gin with the flavors of Portugal that was “clear, like all the others.” He started with a base of barley and rye spirits. In addition to the juniper, he added fifteen botanicals and that almost made it perfect, but there was something missing. So in addition to four kinds of flowers, eight leafy herbs, blackberries, and citrus fruits, he added a rare local hybrid fruit called the “perico.” Its sweet/sour tang and deep red hue (tinto) completed his Portuguese masterpiece in both flavor and color.

SmartAss CornerThe perico is a local specialty fruit in northern Portugal created by grafting a Galicia pear branch onto the root-stock of an Atlantic coastal shrub called “escramboeiro.” Why someone did that to begin with, we’ll never know.